Mario Kart Track Controversy Meme

Prepare for a pretty long info section because I am going into detail for every one of my choices. Some will be more in depth compared to others so if you don't want to spend time reading all of them and rather read info about specific choices, by all means do so. : 3 I haven't done one of these memes in quite a long time so I decided to do one for a change since I am such a huge fan of the Mario Kart series. It will not be a common thing you will find in my gallery, so don't worry. I am an artist after all. x3 Enjoy and try not to hate on me if I like or dislike any tracks that I have as my choices. We are all entitled to our own opinions.   

All credit for controversy meme base goes to~ 
You can find the blank base here: www.deviantart.com/otakuninten…

Screenshots and artwork belongs to~

Note: Every choice for this Controversy meme is based off of the original versions of the tracks and not the retro versions. Reasons being that my preferences for the originals and the retro versions are not exactly the same depending on what changes have been made in their retro counterparts. Some I enjoy more than the originals while some I enjoy less than originals.

Favorite Track

Maple Treeway (Wii) and Bowser’s Castle (Wii U/ Switch)

• I am gonna keep this brief since this is a dual choice. If you wanna know more reasons why I love both of these tracks so much, just ask and I’ll give a more detailed description. Both these tracks I had an incredibly hard time choosing which one I liked more so in the end I wind up giving them the same spot. I willingly pick them the most for the games they are featured in out of all other courses. Sure I enjoy them a lot for different reasons, but I enjoy them pretty much equally. Bowser’s Castle being the most badass and modern incarnation yet and Maple Treeway being a relaxing and atmospheric autumn course. Both tracks do their jobs immensely well and while I wouldn’t say they are the most difficult tracks based off of what they represent, they just have a near perfect flow to me not to mention very memorable and enjoyable music. 

Least Favorite Track

Baby Park (GCN)

• I know this is a popular course that people love for the pure chaos and frantic nature of it, but that is just the thing that takes away from the enjoyment for me. That and well has a very simplistic track layout with it being just a large oval. I tend to get more than enough chaos when racing on normal courses with more complex track layouts especially when being within the fray so I don’t think the fact that how chaotic this course is is enough for me to say it’s a favorite. The only things I actually like about the course is that it takes place in an amusement park as well as the equally fitting music the course has playing. That’s just about it. 

Favorite Circuit

Yoshi Circuit (GCN)

• I was in bit of a toss up between this course and Royal Raceway and even though Mario Kart 64 courses have “Raceway” in the titles, they are still very much Circuit courses. I decided to stick with Yoshi Circuit because I honestly give it credit for being one of the most challenging circuit tracks as well as being the most visually creative with it looking like Yoshi. Since Yoshi is my second most favorite Mario character, there is a bit of a biased for me having at least one of his courses being my favorite much like any of Bowser’s Castles, but I do believe most people do believe this is a solid Circuit course for the reasons I stated before.

Least Favorite Circuit

Figure 8 Circuit (DS)

• This course is just too boring. A simple “8” track layout and while Mario Circuit Wii U/ Switch also has a figure 8 track layout, at least Mario Circuit has things to make the track more interesting. It has, Goombas, Piranha Plants, pipes, trick ramps, an anti gravity boost section and a gliding trick ramp at the very end of the course. Figure 8 Circuit has no gimmicks to make it memorable and the music doesn’t really do anything to help it either since it sounds very generic. 

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Favorite Character Titled Track

Waluigi Pinball (DS)

• I’m gonna make a pretty “controversial” comment. I’m sorry to say peoples, but Waluigi is my least favorite Mario character. While I have nothing against people who are fans of him, (at least not the heartless community fans that care more about his memes rather than his actual character) I always found Wario to be far more interesting and just flat out funny. However, regardless of my distain for Waluigi, I don’t feel any less about his starring track in Mario Kart DS. A fan favorite that truly deserves all the praise that it gets for how creative the course design is. Not only is it on a pinball machine, but there are small details that I think adds even more to the track such as the item roulette sound matching with the environment for the track. I love the music as well and it’s perfect for this track and even though Wario Stadium from this game has the same music, I usually associate with Waluigi Pinball since it is the first track you hear the music from. 

Least Favorite Character Titled Track

Wario’s Gold Mine (Wii)

• I have a love and hate relationship with this course. While I love the fact that it’s very fitting for a Wario track and I believe it’s a track of quality, I personally hate it because of how rough around the edges it is for me to race on. From the few blind dips the track has for making it nearly impossible to avoid item hazards, from the incredibly annoying mine carts that are incredibly easy and punishing to run into. Overall, while I think this course suits Wario perfectly since he is a greedy bastard that loves riches, I just find it very stressful to race on. 

Favorite Snow Track

DK Summit (Wii)

• By far the most fun snow track in my opinion. The winter music is catchy, and the thrilling cannon at the beginning is always a plus for me because most tracks that tend to have it are quality courses, like Maple Treeway and Waluigi Pinball. All the places you can do tricks like the ski section and snowboarding half-pipe that features Shy Guys are a real treat. I also feel like this is a course that is not easy, but isn’t too challenging either. Just a satisfying snow course that doesn’t lower in quality regardless of it being a snow track. X3

Least Favorite Snow Track

Vanilla Lake 2 (SNES)

• Gosh I hate this course….. If DK Summit (Wii) is the perfect example of how to make a fun snow track, Vanilla Lake is definitely the opposite. From the slippery ice, to the very annoying ice blocks that halt any momentum you have when running into them, which is very easy to do…. I heavily dislike the first variation of this course, but I feel like the second is worse because this one has a water hazard that you can slip into because of the ice physics. Also the track is pretty much a large circle and while I know many of the tracks in Super Mario Kart are pretty simple in track layout, this one has to be one of the most bland in the whole game. The only saving grace for me is the catchy music. 

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Favorite Beach Track

Dolphin Shoals (MK8)

• While this course doesn’t have the traditional beach name attached to it, it’s still a beach track nonetheless. Most beach tracks are relaxing and atmospheric, this track happens to have all of that and more! I think it is the most exciting beach track to race on and I love the flow and theme to it from having dolphins that you can trick along with through rings, from doing tricks on top of a large eel and that sexy saxophone solo that finishes off the course with a short but sweet gliding section. The music in this course is so sooo good and it’s perfect for a beach setting. Love it! 

Least Favorite Beach Track

Koopa Troopa Beach 2 (SNES)

• A similar problem I have with Vanilla Lake 2 also remains for this track. It is pretty much a circle in terms of how you drive around the course. While this course doesn’t annoy me as much as Vanilla Lake 1 or 2, I just feel like the track is boring, even for beach track standards because I’m not really getting into the atmosphere as say Dolphin Shoals or even Mario Kart 64’s Koopa Troopa Beach which is also a simple course but has more going for it that makes it more distinct and memorable. I don’t tend to expect much out of beach tracks when it comes to how exciting it feels to race on them, but by far Koopa Troopa Beach 2 is not only the most boring beach track to race on, but the most awkward because of the few deep ends of water that you can fall into if not careful enough staying in the shallow parts of the water.

Favorite Desert Track

Cheese Land (GBA)

• I’m gonna be a bit biased, I absolutely love cheese. <3 My most favorite thing to eat when it comes to what it’s added to. From sandwiches, cheese burgers, cheese fries, pizza, macaroni and cheese, the list goes on! So the fact there is a Cheese Land course, I’m already going to respect it. xD I just love how Super Circuit uses cheese for a unique take on a desert track. It also has Little Mousers found through out the course that also make sounds in rhythm to the catchy music for this course! This track is incredibly cheesy (sorry for the pun) and has to be one of the most visually interesting tracks from Mario Kart Super Circuit. While I’m not a big fan of its retro version from Mario Kart 8 for what visual changes it made and how it feels to drive on making it feel more like a clunky desert track rather than it being a cheese desert track, I still love the original from a game that has mixed opinions from fans!

Least Favorite Desert Track

Desert Hills (DS)

• Honestly the only thing I like about this course is the reference to Super Mario Bros 3, more specifically the desert level featuring the Angry Sun. Lol Besides that, I find the course to be bland, even for a desert course. The flow of it feels clunky, especially with the large sand hills with the curvy turns found on the end of the track. Outside of the Angry sun shooting out fire and the few Pokeys found on the course, this track meh to me. 

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Favorite Bowser’s Castle

Bowser’s Castle (N64)

• The nostalgia I have for this track is very high and while I wouldn’t say nostalgia is always something that's a deciding factor to whether or not I really enjoy something, this is the case for this classic track as well as other things. While Bowser’s Castle (Wii U/ Switch) is my most favorite track over all and I guess you can consider it my most favorite Bowser’s Castle track as well since it happens to be a Bowser’s Castle track, the reason why I decided to go with the one from Mario Kart 64 for this choice is because I think it perfectly gave us a standard for what to expect for future Bowser’s Castle courses. While Bowser’s Castle didn’t debut in this game since it debuted in the previous Mario Kart game, I believe most people who played this Bowser’s Castle variation thinks the key elements that can be seen and heard throughout this track to be memorable and an evolving staple that future incarnations tend to have a few if not all of them. From the ominous, atmospheric yet badass music, to how Bowser’s home/ homes turf looks with the castle itself, statues of him made in his honor, Thwomps, fire and other hazards and even outside of his castle displaying how deadly yet invigorating Bowser’s lands are and most importantly the overall challenge of driving through this building and land of the evil Koopa King. This track just does its job very well and is perfect example of what to expect for future incarnations of one of my most beloved courses in the whole series. This track is the reason why I love the one from Wii U/ Switch so much because if it wasn’t for this one, I wouldn’t have such an amazing variation for it. <3 

Least Favorite Bowser’s Castle

Bowser’s Castle (3DS)

• While I certainly don’t hate this track, not in the slightest and NO it isn’t because I am a Bowser fan. Lol It’s because while I believe it does a solid job incorporating the staples found through out most of the Bowser’s Castle tracks, the best way I can describe the feelings I get for playing on this track is that it’s “underwhelming” to me. Now with the Bowser’s Castle tracks found in Super Mario Kart and even Mario Kart Super Circuit feeling like they are inferior to this 3DS incarnation, I just feel like there is a lack of consistent focus and flow in this one. Examples are, a random rotating wooden cylinder found in the second half of the track that seems to be a replacement to the metallic one from Bowser’s Castle (DS) except you can choose to either drive on top of it or drive through it and there are lava geysers in an underwater section and while I give the game credit for adding a new feature in a Bowser’s Castle track, it is awkward driving around the lava geysers with the underwater physics. There are more lava geysers behind trick ramps that are very easy to get hit by because of how it’s a bit unpredictable when they fire upwards, pretty much encouraging me to avoid tricking off the ramps most of the time. Another thing I don’t really care for too much is the remix music of Bowser’s Castle (GCN). I prefer the original music more. Overall since I didn’t have high expectations for Super Mario Kart and Mario Kart Super Circuits Bowser’s Castle tracks and I think they did a good job for the hardware they were made for, after playing the one on 3DS I feel a bit disappointed because most of the other Bowser’s Castle tracks I was always very satisfied with even if they didn’t always have ideal features, they were at least memorable, fun and challenging to race on. This one truly doesn’t have any truly memorable things about it outside of the things that I personally have a problem with such as the rotating wooden cylinder and the underwater lava geysers that are awkward to drive around which is sad because the Bowser’s Castle tracks I usually love tend to have memorable things about them I really enjoy, not this one. A solid track in comparison to most of the tracks from Mario Kart 7 but in comparison to it being a staple course theme in the series, I expected something to really “wow” me with it. ;w;

Favorite Rainbow Road

Rainbow Road (Wii)

• This track is just so breathtaking and gorgeous! While it was a bit of a toss up for me picking this or Mario Kart DS’s version, I decided to go with Wii’s since it’s an overall more interesting track with its visual theme being based off of Super Mario Galaxy. This track just has it all, lovely pastel colors for the rainbow, a half-pipe section to do tricks, a Launch Star ring cannon, and to finish it off dash panels that shoot you through star rings while moving through a tunnel of stars all while driving over a planet that looks like Earth being below you. Absolutely stunning! And to top it all off, this track is probably one of the most challenging to race on in the entire series but I feel like it’s a completely fair challenge with no track hazards to worry about. Just the course itself and I truly love a Mario Kart track that challenges you but in a fair way. The music is also amazing and captures the true feeling of wonder I get racing on this course. Beautiful but deadly, ha hah! XD Rainbow Road much like Bowser’s Castle is always a track I am the most excited to see with each incarnation and this one truly feels like a perfect finale course! 

Least Favorite Rainbow Road

Rainbow Road (Wii U/ Switch)

• Now with all the excitement I had for Mario Kart Wii’s Rainbow Road before actually getting to the Special Cup and being completely satisfied after playing it, I had the same excitement for what Wii U’s would be like only to have much of the same disappointment for when I finally got to play Bowser’s Castle (3DS). Yup I feel underwhelmed again and even more so this time around because the tracks in Mario Kart 8 look absolutely amazing visually. Nintendo has managed to make even the more dull and generic tracks look great so I was so surprised to see how disappointed I was to finally play this game’s finale track. Weirdly enough, I say Rainbow Road (3DS) was more mind-blowing and amazing and that course was made on weaker hardware! The essence and what I’d come to expect from a Rainbow Road is lacking here compared to what staple features (SNES) and (N64) Rainbow Road have introduced to us. The former being challenge and the latter being visually beautiful and atmospheric. I think it all comes down to the overall theme with it being a Space Station and the music doesn’t really capture me as much as most of the previous Rainbow Road tracks but it is fitting for the theme it’s based off of at least. As for challenge while it isn’t absolutely necessary to make an enjoyable Rainbow Road course for me, it is something I’d like to have if the visuals are not strong enough on their own to intrigue me. This incarnation of Rainbow Road doesn’t really intrigue me with the visuals nor does it feel like a satisfying challenge. While a Space Station seems like a solid idea on paper, the magical and fantasy elements that I usually see in a Rainbow Road track are not here and even the small cannon section isn’t enough to make me really love this track. There actually is a painful part of the track found in the very beginning where you go into anti gravity making it very easy for you to get pushed off of the track because of the beginning having sharp turns. Even if you know how to successfully make the turns in time trials, it’s a test of endurance to successfully make the turns without falling off before the gliding section because of the pressure of other racers bumping into you giving you unwanted speed and momentum. While I love challenge in Rainbow Road courses, this section isn’t actually fair challenge. It’s nearly impossible to not fall off without slowing down when other racers are bumping into you and even then you won’t always be able to avoid falling off even if you do attempt to slow down. Yes I know that shouldn’t be the only deciding factor to not like this as a Rainbow Road course, but first impressions are very important to me when it comes to playing Mario Kart courses so if you have a very rough first part of a course, it puts a bitter taste in my mouth. The rest of the course doesn’t feel much better to me outside of the cannon section. The less saturated colors for the rainbow parts of the road itself I don’t really like either and I guess that comes from it being part of a Space Station. Overall, I much would have preferred a Rainbow Road incarnation similar Mario Kart Wii, Mario Kart 7’s or even Mario Kart DS’s rather than the one we got. An underwhelming finale track compared to a track that came right before it which I absolutely love.